CCMH cuts ties with executive director

Columbia Community Mental Health on Tuesday severed ties with Roland Migchielsen, the nonprofit's executive director for the past 11 years.

Migchielsen said he had earlier informed the CCMH board of directors of his plans to retire at the end of the year, and he was surprised by Tuesday's board decision.

"I had set a date at the end of the year, but they wanted to make it earlier," Migchielsen said.

Janine Salisbury, a spokeswoman for CCMH, would not elaborate on the reasons why the nonprofit, which provides mental health, behavioral and substance abuse recovery services in Columbia County, released Migchielsen ahead of his scheduled retirement.

"He's really put together an amazing coordinated set of services for our community. We will miss his visionary leadership," Salisbury said of Migchielsen.

Salisbury said the board expects to hire a replacement for Migchielsen within the next few months.

"We're close to that. We had interviewed. We have not found the right candidate yet, but we feel confident we will have somebody soon," she said.

Terms of Migchielsen's termination were not disclosed.

"The entire Board would like to thank Roland for his tireless years of leading CCMH as Executive Director. We wish him well in his retirement. He has been an integral part of the organization's growth over the last decade," noted CCMH board president, Mary Mitchell, in a prepared statement.